Week in Review: Fashionably Unfashionable, Altar Boy Boot Camp and Patriotic Prepping

Happy Friday! last day of the work week because Independence Day is tomorrow!

After the vigil Mass on Saturday, Phil and I took the only two kids with us out on our weekly date, which they loved.  They both ordered steak tips - I guess gone are the days of chicken nuggets and mac n' cheese!  

Going out to eat is something I love doing, but just is not financially responsible for our whole family often, so it's nice to treat them one by one or two by two when we can.  Please don't mind their black socks and black shoes, I know it's not fashionable but they have to wear that for altar serving!

Maggie and Xander came home from the Steubenville Conference, which they absolutely loved and can't wait to go back again.  

Friends since preschool

Cousins since birth

Week in Review: Morning Walks in Weighted Vests, Steubenville Conferences, and Setting Up an Apartment

Happy Last Friday of June!  

Since school has been out, my summer routine has started, and ba da ba ba baaa, I'm loving it!  

Phil and I wake up at 6am (okay don't truly love that part) and then we put on our weighted vests (get one that's 1/10 of your body weight) and walk Lucy Doodle four miles before the day gets too hot for her.   You can't really complain about early morning walks when this is your view and you get to be with your bestie for the restie:

Then I get home and do my Ladder app workout for the day (Phil goes to the gym), shower and head off to work for 9am. It's so much easier than the school year, when I have to be at work at 8am and drop off the kids to school by 7:30.  Anyway, it's the little things!

This week, I dropped off the youngest three to Track & Field camp at the high school on my way to work each morning.  Xander wasn't able to go on the last day (you'll see why later) but these little cuties participated in the Olympics and deserved a shave ice after, for sure.

Learning my old track event - shotput!

A Strong Start to Summer

 Summer has begun, but first school had to wrap up for Maggie (last final was on Monday), Declan and Brendan (last day was Tuesday), and Phil (teacher's last day was on Wednesday).

Maggie took D + B to The Cottage for lunch and a treat on their last day, as one does:

Declan and Brendan both had really lovely teachers this year and had amazing years all around, academically, socially, physically, mentally... you name it and they grew leaps and bounds.  We are very thankful for our Catholic schools!

Apparently they call him Decky?  Who knew? We typically shorten to Dex at home.

Brendan's teacher comments from his last report card:

Brendan has a natural curiosity and is always eager to explore new ideas and concepts,
making him a wonderful contributor to our classroom environment.
He always put in his best effort and faces every challenge with confidence.
I would encourage him to continue putting his best effort into all that he does
 and to continue to love learning.
Brendan will do great things!

Not to be left out, Phil was June's Faculty Spotlight at the high school:

They also made a nice video of him here.

And then the weather took note that summer had started and we had some nice beach and pool days with friends over the long weekend (Juneteenth was off and then I took Friday off as well!).  

This beach day was a little crazy, as I was trying to meet my friend and her cuties at a new-to-me beach but I got lost, didn't have cell service for a while, and then it ended up being the longest walk and windiest day ever.  Thank God I had Maggie with me.  But in the end, it was still so fun!!

Summer Martins and Summer Not

When the days end of "Hey Mom! Look what I found!" I will be sad for sure.  This was a hermit crab.

An Expensive Trim, A Quick Getaway, and A Father's Day Race

So maybe I shouldn't have scheduled a haircut on Friday the 13th after all.  It's not super awful, but it's not what I was going for.  It's a little shorter and no real style, just a long bang chopped straight across before I asked her to try to angle it a bit.  Basically I now have a shoulder length cut with some short pieces in front that annoy me and I keep re-tucking behind my ears all day.  No bangs.  Oh and did I mention that I scheduled a Wash + Cut Only, so I went in, waited a few minutes, got my hair washed and cut and was done in 21 minutes for FIFTY DOLLARS?  What the what now?  Of course, I left a $10 tip for the stylist as well, so I was out $60.  No real styling, no hair drying...I can't even imagine what it costs to get one's hair colored or any extra services added on.

Moving on.

Phil booked us a 24 hour getaway to Newport to a little Bed + Breakfast place we like, and we stayed overnight on Friday.  It was just what the doctor ordered.  We ate, we walked, we slept in, we ate some more, we shopped, we picked up groceries on the way home and still made it to the Vigil Mass on Saturday.  We have absolutely no photos but it was the start of a nice Father's Day weekend for Phil which he deserved!

On Sunday morning, Phil and five kids ran the 5k race in our town.  The Ice Cream Cottage is a sponsor and it's a fun event plus we can just walk over to the start line.

Happy Father's Day to their favorite!

It was Brendan's (age 8) first time running a 5k race and he did great!  Phil ran with him and said he ran the whole time and had a good attitude. 

Eamon

Declan (Andrew and Xander too)

Andrew and Xander

Week in Review: Undergraduate Awards, Retro Meals and Haircut Hopes

Happy Friday the 13th!  I'm not superstitious, but I am a little stitious so I always recognize the date, look out for black cats and that's about it.  I do not watch horror movies so I don't really know what is supposed to be feared on Friday the 13th and as they say "ignorance is bliss".

Let's look back at the week...an almost uneventful week after having a high school and an 8th grade graduation...yet in this big family, there is literally always something going on with someone.  I wouldn't know how else to live life, honestly.  Like what do people DO when they aren't being scheduled and planned by their kids activities and events?  Will I be bored once all of this is over?  Will Phil and I just stare at each other and reminisce about the good old days or will we love having the freedom to choose the activities?  Or maybe there will be grandbabies to love and it never ends, just changes a bit.  

OK Colleen, let's get on with it already.

Yes ma'am!

Maggie had undergraduate awards after the Closing Mass for the school year, and I was able to take my lunch break early to pop over and attend.  Look at these beautiful door greeters:

Maggie, Maggie and Maggie, jk that's my niece Abby

  Maggie did the first reading and the Prayers of the Faithful:

She also won three awards!  She is in the Top Ten of the Junior Class, received the St. Julie Billiart Award for having over 150 hours of community service this year, and won the book award from St. Bonaventure's College (where my brother attended for one year - ha!).  When she won her last award, I leaned over to Phil and said "we have peaked as parents...it's all downhill from here".  Maggie is just such a wonderful daughter, easy to parent, is virtuous and hard-working, and takes initiative.  Unlike my boys, she needs no nudging at all, and seeks service hours and shadowing opportunities all on her own while playing sports and getting all her school work done.  One might say she is my favorite girl!  One would be correct!

Cousins both in the Top Ten of their grades

The Maggies

The Maggies doing the Maggie Face

The Fifth (Child) Graduates Eighth (Grade)

Right after we got through Eamon's high school graduation, Alexander Blaise said "Hey don't forget about me!" and went ahead and graduated from 8th Grade at the Catholic school he's been in since he was three years old!

Preschool Graduation:

Kindergarten Graduation:

8th Grade Graduation:

It's true what they say:

 "The tie may be long, but the pants are short."

Also, that thing about the years passing quickly!